Week 3 - Theories of Communication Online PDF

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Week 3: Theories of Communication Online This week, we will briefly address what a theory is and why we need theories. We will then touch on theories of computer-mediated communication, with a focus on why we use social media, how we use social media, and what we gain from using social media. We will finish by discussing how theories inform our understanding of social media use in an applied way.

Theories You may be wondering why we need these things called “theories”. Or perhaps you’re not sure what a theory is? Before we talk about why theories are important, let’s first address what a theory is.

What is a Theory Exactly? A theory is a general principle or set of principles that explains how several separate facts are related. A theory is like a puzzle with many pieces that fit together to create a coherent whole. A theory is developed based on numerous findings over time and helps organize conclusions. Figure 1 is an example of how a theory might come to be. Perhaps you are a psychologist who is interested in better understand human learning. You do a few related but different studies and see that a pattern emerges. You conclude based on the results of the studies that people learn behaviours by watching how others behave! The three studies are the puzzle pieces that fit together to create a coherent whole: your theory. Figure 1 shows the studies that can contribute to forming a theory about how people learn behaviours. In this case, the theory is that people can learn behaviours by watching how other people behave. The studies used to form that conclusion are outlined below. Study #1: After viewing a violent cartoon, children will behave more aggressively toward each other. Study #2: After observing a person help someone, people will be more likely to help others. Study #3: After seeing a kid tease another child, a child will tease another child.

Why Are Theories Important? We often want to know “Why do we do that?” or “Why is something so appealing?” or “How do we change from using something?”. Simply put, theories in Psychology help explain human reactions. These may include behaviours, thoughts and/or feelings. The theories we will touch on in this lesson will help to answer the following questions:

1. Why do we use social media? 2. How do we use social media (includes differences between face to face and online interaction)? 3. What do we gain from using social media?

Theories of Computer-Mediated Communication Sometimes theories are developed from research and observation, and other times robust or traditional theories are tweaked and edited to fit a new context. With the emergence of online technologies, this is very important. The ability to take an established theory and apply it to the online setting allows for comparison and editing of existing notions of human interactions, without having to create the theory again from scratch! For example, we know we learn through observation. What this means is that we look to role models as a gauge for what is appropriate (Bandura and Walthers, 1977). If we see someone doing something that gets them praise or some other reinforcement, we’re more likely to mimic that behaviour. The opposite is true for behaviours that elicit punishment; these we learn to avoid.

Social Learning Theory Applied We can use social learning (and other theories) and apply it to social media. You can try it! Here is a list of behaviours online. Would social learning apply or not? Select each to reveal the answer. Keep in mind that these are speculative and further research may be required to understand whether these relationships are significant. Posting information in peer groups If you see friends getting a lot of likes based on a certain type of image posted, you too may want to post the same thing! Be careful though, as this can have harmful outcomes if the information shared is not appropriate. For example, if you were to post a sexual image that an employer sees. Opinions on social media Perhaps you come across an article and notice that many people are submitting comments about this topic. You might feel motivated to submit your own opinion as a result. Adding friends You may feel pressured to add lots of friends on Facebook because you see that all your other friends have upwards of 1000 friends! Maybe you also feel good about keeping up with others around you and want to feel as though you are as “popular” online as they are.

Questions for Consideration Now that we have tried applying theory to social media use, I encourage you to keep the following questions in mind as we examine other theories:

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How might you apply this theory to a social media site if you were the developer? Which aspects of the theory align with your social media and why? Which ones do not align? Can this theory be applied to everyone or should we think about how it might differ by groups? Which groups?

Social Media Engagement Theory: Why We Use Social Media Social Media Engagement theory was developed, not surprisingly, to explain engagement with technology. This theory highlights two aspects that influence engagement with social media:

1. Social interactions and 2. Technological features (Di Gangi & Wasko, 2016, p. 1). The idea here is that our experience with each aspect determines how much time we invest in that social media.

Social Interactions The social aspect of engagement has to do with communication among users. For example, the conversations, likes, comments or shares that happen between users. These interactions give users a sense of meaning and motivate them to invest in online interactions. Do you have any “friends” on your social media profile(s) that you have since deleted or unfriended because you didn’t get feedback from them or have any meaningful interactions with them?

Technical Features The technical aspect of engagement has to do with the capabilities of the technology itself. For example, how easily users can retrieve information and interact with others, the ability to use features for multiple purposes (e.g., news feed that allows for text entries and uploading of links/videos/photos), the ability to integrate content (e.g., sharing among various sites and pulling things in from another social media profile) and whether features evolve to meet users specific needs. You might think of how social media sites are constantly changing to update and upgrade the features. Perhaps one day you will open Instagram and “Voila!” you can now post interactive videos with your followers.

Point to Remember To sum up your learning, keep this formula in mind: High social interaction + Useful technical features = Greater likelihood of engagement with technology The more frequently users engage, the more valuable the social media platform becomes for everyone.

Final Thoughts Can you see how, if you were a social media site developer, the main principles of Social Media Engagement Theory might be particularly useful? Reflect on the features that might apply to different groups of users. For example, would older adults require the same sorts of features as younger adults? Why or why not?

Social Presence Theory: Why We Use Social Media The next theory we’ll address is called Social Presence Theory. The original creators of this theory, Short, Williams, and Christie (1976) wanted to explain the effect telecommunications media had on communication. The original theory evolved over time to include communication via email and social media. The definition of social presence has changed over time. It is now most commonly defined as the degree to which a person is perceived as being “real” and being “there” (Lowenthal, 2009, p. 15). Today, social presence is a crucial component when explaining how and why we communicate online.

Social Learning Theory Applied We can use social learning (and other theories) and apply it to social media. You can try it! Here is a list of behaviours online. Would social learning apply or not? Select each to reveal the answer. Keep in mind that these are speculative and further research may be required to understand whether these relationships are significant.

Two Factors in Social Presence The construct of social presence is dependent on two factors. Intimacy Intimacy is defined as the closeness felt via several cues in a particular medium. Examples include eye contact, body language, physical distance, smiling, and personal topics of conversation. Immediacy Immediacy is characterized as the psychological distance between two communicators. This has to do with how much of a priority the communication partner is given in terms of attention and importance, and can be communicated via verbal and/or non verbal cues. For example, when interacting with another person online, you may use emoticons, tell stories about yourself and others, and use things such as sarcasm and humour. In doing so, the other person feels connected to you, even via a screen or text message.

Point to Remember The important part to remember here is that there is a continuum of perceived intimacy and immediacy. As cues are added or taken away, perceived social presence either increases or decreases.

Continuum of Social Presence In Figure 2 below, you will see that social presence increases as each new “cue” is added. Specifically, text only exhibits the lowest perceived social presence, which then increases with the addition of audio, followed by audio and video, and finally face-to-face communications, which elicits the greatest perceived social presence.

Final Thoughts Do you think Social Presence Theory helps to explain why certain social media sites are successful while others are not? Does this theory apply to younger generations who commonly use text-based

communication for highly emotional conversations (e.g., arguments breaking up)? Do you think this theory applies to new media?

Social Information Processing: How We Use Social Media The theory of social information processing (Walther, 1996) was developed in response to arguments that we could only develop meaningful face-to-face relationships. Instead Walther argued that as humans, we have the tendency to communicate the same way face to face as we do online or via computers. Given enough time, he believed that, regardless of the lack of cues online, we as humans would find a way to communicate effectively. Ultimately, Walther argued that “given the same investment of time and commitment, relational quality in computer mediated communication will be the same as face-to-face communication” (Thurlow, Lengel, & Tomic, 2004, p. 249).

Charades: Try this! A Small Sip Text-based communication typically lacks nonverbal cues that accompany face-to-face communication, this even applies to gestures! You can’t necessarily use even a gesture online. Even when nonverbal cues are unavailable, communicators naturally adapt their communication to whatever cues remain. We essentially get a SIP of information here and there and must create impressions of people based on these small sips. Even still, somehow, we manage to develop and maintain online relationships! What sorts of cues might be available to us then? Depending on who you ask, some might argue that relationships online happen slower and are less rich/intimate. Because there may be a lack of physical or non-verbal cues, perhaps it takes longer for us to understand meaning and develop those close relationships that might be formed quickly in person. What I’d like you to remember is that even with small sips of information, we are able to develop intimate relationships online. In fact, Walter (1996) argues that online relationships can be just as rich as face-to-face ones and can possess similar qualities (e.g., intimacy, trust etc.). Even further, Walter posits that online relationships might even facilitate or encourage relationships that would have never existed because of proximity or geographical limits.

Reflect on Your List Now you may want to look back on your list of features that differentiate face-to-face and online communication. What are the differences between the two? You may want to think about for each type of communication, what you might use (e.g., cues) to get to know another person and perhaps which type of communication you think might be more effective in developing long term, intimate relationships. Reflecting even further, if you were tasked with creating a social media site, how you would integrate the ideas presented in this theory into your design?

Goffman Self-Presentation Theory: How and Why We Use Social Media Goffman developed his theory to explain self-presentation, which is the process by which we attempt to control how we are perceived by others. This applies to both in-person and online settings. Take a minute and reflect on how you might feel if you encountered the following people and how this related to online communication.

Idealization Thinking about what you post online, do you edit your photos? Do you select only the most flattering ones, or do you post the most immediate photos that show the real you? The important thing to remember here is that, according to this theory, we are more likely to engage in idealization, to exaggerate our positive qualities rather than our negative ones. We also selectively present information that we think others will want to see. The singer Demi Lovato is tired of feeling ashamed of her body and posting edited versions. For fun, you can go to this site and read more about her rebellion against idealization!

Two Key Processes Goffman proposed two key processes that predict self-presentation.

Impression Motivation This is the motivation to control how you are viewed by others.

Impression Construction This is the aspiration or hope to create or construct the desired impression.

Variability You might have noticed that when you were asked about your photos, you realized you don’t really edit or care or change how you are viewed. This is completely normal and in fact Goffman acknowledged that there is variability in how (and how much) each of us adapt to the expectations of others. For example, some of us might be more of a social chameleon and change who we are and how we act in different settings. Others might be more consistent in terms of who they are in social settings.

Social Capital: What We Gain from Social Media What is Social Capital? For a lot of us, social media provides us with some form of benefit(s). This may come in the form of likes, prestige, praise, self-esteem, the ability to meet similar others or the joy in sharing our lives with others (Davis III et al., 2012, p.12). Social capital can be thought of as your social connections and the gains you obtain from those connections. Importantly, social capital gives individuals more control over resources. In the previous Black Mirror episode, the number of likes characters give each other translates into an

overall social score. This social score then provides individuals with the ability to buy houses in certain neighbourhoods and drive certain cars.

Bonding and Bridging Social capital hinges in two factors, bonding and bridging (Putman, 2000). These two terms translate into the types of ties you have with your connections online and the benefits gained from these ties. You can click on each to learn more. Bonding Bonding refers to strong ties within your connections. These are the social connections that we feel committed to and that we feel like. When you think about your own friendships, which ones do you feel particularly connected to? Why? Perhaps it’s that you gain emotional support, advice or have a sense of belonging in a social group or with an individual. Maybe it’s something else? Importantly, these are the strong ties that BOND us and the ties we trust. These ties help us to “get by”. Bridging Bridging refer to the weak ties you might have between your connections. These are the connections that may introduce us to new information or perspectives, through different social classes, races or religions. These ties create bridges between groups that otherwise would not connect, helping us to “get ahead”.

Connectivism Imagine a scenario where you are trying to answer a difficult assignment question. What might you do to figure out the answer? Where do you go for information? How do you decide what information is good or accurate versus bad or inaccurate? … “the thesis that knowledge is distributed across a network of connections, and therefore that learning consists of the ability to construct and traverse those networks” The theory of Connectivism was developed by Stephen Downes (2007) to explain how social connections relate to how we learn and make decisions. Simply put, connectivism is social learning that occurs via social networks.

Learning Through Social Connections Social connections are crucial to learning. Why? According to Connectivism, our networks provide us with diversity in opinion, information that connects different fields and concepts, and provide us with the chance to learn how to make critical decisions. Being connected gives us the opportunity to decide what we want to learn, and the meaning we want to derive from that learning. With exposure to information from a variety of sources and in a variety of ways, we adapt how we view the world based on what we encounter. Essentially, our connections define what we learn and how we become.

Two Ways to Visualize Connectivism Here are two different ways to visualize connectivism. 

A learning Network

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A Teacher’s Network

Thinking about social media sites, how might connectivism relate to learning in these settings? What sorts of features must be present to encourage and allow connectivism, and subsequently learning to occur? What issues might be present in social media that may skew or negatively affect our learning?

Why Are These Important to Understanding Social Media Use? All the theories we have touched on in this lesson give us insight into human interactions. While we have already covered a few areas that apply, here are some more areas that might interest you. We will touch on some of these later in the course, but for now, some “food for thought!”

1. Addiction or appeal o Why do we LOVE our devices/social media so much? 2. Connection/belonging o Why do we feel so “connected” when online? 3. Self-disclosure o What do we share and why? 4. Learning o What biases and impressions are formed through our online interactions?

Summary In this lesson we reviewed what a theory is and why theories are important. We also touched on a few important theories related to social media use and communication online. This lesson provided you with the opportunity to review some key theories and think about how these theories might apply to social media use. Next, we’ll talk about how the self develops traditionally and how technology impacts on the self....